To put it bluntly, she had to go scavenging.
Shen Lu gave herself a pep talk. Might as well give it a try. If there was one thing this place had in abundance, it was mountains of discarded metal scrap.
Not far from the Seventeenth District was No. 3 Landfill. Shen Lu pushed herself up, hands on her knees, and started walking toward the landfill, sticking to the shady spots for cover.
As she left the narrow, crooked streets, a fierce, sandy wind blew right into her.
Inexperienced, Shen Lu didn't close her mouth in time and got a mouthful of sand for her trouble. She spat a couple of times but couldn't get it all out.
Another dozen or so steps brought her to No. 3 Landfill.
Unlike the landfills of Shen Lu's original world, this one had no leftover food scraps or discarded furniture—only cold, hard metal.
The nauseating smell of rust bored aggressively into her nostrils. It was so stimulating that Shen Lu felt utterly refreshed.
Two hunched-over, middle-aged men walked past her, casting a couple of curious glances her way.
Seeing a girl in a lace princess dress in the Seventeenth District was one thing, but encountering one at the landfill was even more shocking.
A lace dress was a symbol of the upper-class citizens. Only they could afford such exquisite and expensive clothing.
What would someone like that be doing in a landfill?
Shen Lu ignored their gawking stares, ripped off a relatively clean piece of her dress's inner lining, and tied it around her nose and mouth like a mask. Then, with unwavering steps, she entered the landfill.
She had assumed the system would accept any metal that wasn't worthless junk. Shen Lu didn't recognize many types of metal, so she did her best to pick out parts that looked to be in good condition to show the system.
[Host, the black, thread-like metal in your hand is tungsten. 1000 grams can be exchanged for ten liters of pure water.]
Shen Lu was stunned. "How much? How much did you say for ten liters of pure water?!"
[1000 grams, Host.]
Shen Lu: "You've got to be kidding me!"
She had spent an hour just to find a single palm-length tungsten wire that weighed less than 40 grams.
What did 1000 grams even mean? She would have to find 25 more wires of this length just to reach that amount!
At her current rate, there was no way she could find 25 tungsten wires in a single day!
Frustration was one thing, but Shen Lu still buried her head and continued to search for metals she could trade for ingredients.
Three hours later, Shen Lu couldn't take it anymore. Covered in grime, she walked out of the landfill and traded her haul with the system for half a bucket of water, a handful of mint, and a half-fingernail's worth of sugar.
The system had some conscience, at least. The bucket was a freebie. It was metal and came with a lid. Shen Lu was very satisfied.
She smacked the mint a few times to release its aroma, tossed both the mint and sugar into the water, then put the lid on and gave it a couple of shakes. After letting it steep for a moment, the mint water was ready.
That's right, Shen Lu had decided to set up a small stall to sell mint water.
After all, she was penniless and didn't even have a place to live, let alone a fire to cook with.
Mint water required no fire, was simple to make, and in a world with such extreme food scarcity, she had no doubt it would sell.
As she left, Shen Lu grabbed a foot-long metal plate and headed back to the Seventeenth District, carrying the bucket.
Shen Lu already had a spot in mind.
Right next to the Seventeenth District was the Imperial City's most famous Gold Street.
The entire street was a dazzling array of food, drink, and entertainment—a paradise in the hearts of the middle and lower-class citizens. Even the upper-class citizens would occasionally venture there.
Unlike the dilapidated and desolate Seventeenth District, Gold Street was opulent and bustling, so prosperous it felt like it belonged to a different time and space, giving one an unreal sense of having been transported.
Shen Lu didn't go too far. She found a shaded spot and set down her bucket.
She pulled out a piece of scrap iron and began scratching words onto the metal plate with a screeching sound.
Scraping away the rust revealed the lighter metal underneath. Before long, a few crooked characters appeared on the plate—Little Deer Cuisine.
Shen Lu propped the metal plate in front of the bucket and dusted off her hands.
Okay, she had a sign and a product. This was her stall. It was incredibly crude, but who said a stall had to be fancy? As long as it worked.
Shen Lu mentally urged the system to verify her mission.
[Ding! Food stall 1/1 detected and successfully named. Mission complete. Reward: one Lottery Ticket.]
Shen Lu let out a small sound of surprise. "There's a lottery?"
[Yes, Host.]
Shen Lu: "Well, let's have a go at it. What's in the prize pool?"
A translucent interface unfolded before Shen Lu, revealing a huge, square lottery grid.
It looked a lot like the blind box lottery machines she had seen in malls in her previous life, only this one had far more squares—hundreds of them.
[The Host only needs to think 'draw' to activate the blind box machine. The prize pool is rich with many surprises.]
Shen Lu thought 'draw', and the blind box machine immediately began to flash. Three seconds later, it emitted a soft 'beep'.
[Congratulations to the Host for drawing blind box #3 prize: one Permanent Ice Ice Cup.]
[Permanent Ice Ice Cup: No matter when or where, the Ice Ice Cup will always be as cold as if just taken from a freezer. Any beverage poured inside will immediately cool to 0°C, providing a cool and refreshing experience!]
[Ding~ New Mission issued: Please sell 10 cups of mint water.]
[Ding~ New Mission issued: Please acquire your own food shop and give it a name.]
Huh? Why two missions at once?
She could handle the first mission, but wasn't the second one a bit beyond her current capabilities?
[The Host need not be anxious. The first is a daily mission, and the second is a main quest.]
[Daily missions must be completed within the day. Main quests have no time limit and will be considered successful once the Host meets the conditions.]
So that's how it was.
Shen Lu promptly put the main quest out of her mind. It was impossible to complete anytime soon, so there was no point dwelling on it.
This prize, however, was incredibly useful. It was practically tailor-made for her current situation.
Just a moment ago, she had been worrying about not having a proper container for the water, having picked up a cup-like metal part to use as a substitute.
The metal part was covered in rust spots, but Shen Lu chose to ignore them.
Besides, plenty of people here ate filthy things. "A little dirt never hurt anyone," right?
Now with the Permanent Ice Ice Cup, not only was it guaranteed to be clean, but it could also cool her drinks. It was fantastic.
Shen Lu was full of confidence in her little stall. She would sell one cup of mint water for 20 Star Coins. Half a bucket should yield about twenty-something cups, meaning she could earn over 400 Star Coins!
Based on the local prices, she could rent a cheap room in the Seventeenth District and still have some money left over to buy some proper tools, which would improve her scavenging efficiency tomorrow.
Plus, completing the mission would earn her another Lottery Ticket. She wondered what prize she might get this time.
Shen Lu pressed her lips together, a flicker of hope for the future igniting within her.
But pedestrians came and went, and not a single one was willing to stop and buy her mint water.
Shen Lu tried calling out to them, but it had no effect.
Accidentally, Shen Lu caught her reflection in the silver-white metal wall across the street and had an epiphany.
Her hair was a mess, and there wasn't a clean spot on her body. She looked no different from a beggar.
No wonder no one was buying her mint water. Her appearance was too poor. She didn't look like someone selling drinks; she looked more like a little beggar trying to scam people.
She had to wash her face.
With the mint water?
Shen Lu was reluctant. She didn't want her face to smell like mint, and besides, the two scratches on her face made it even less suitable.
She suddenly remembered that Fu Cheng had something called a 'folding medical kit' at his waist. Aside from medicine, it also contained a small amount of gauze and saline solution—more than enough to wash her face.
Shen Lu quickly made up her mind. She picked up her bucket and sign, returned to the Seventeenth District, and found Fu Cheng.
Fu Cheng was still lying in the same spot, but he was in an even worse state than before. Someone had torn his bandages to shreds, exposing the raw, red flesh to the air, which emanated a metallic scent of blood.
As Shen Lu got closer, she was even more astonished. Several rats were gnawing on Fu Cheng's severed limbs, squeaking and chittering as they ate, as if holding a conversation.
What a sight. They were holding a banquet, and the main course was human flesh sashimi.